Family Portrait

DSC_0133.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake -
You make us all look better. :)
- Dad

Hanging with the cousins

DSC_0126.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob -
You had so much to say to your cousins. You told them lots and lots and they made you smile and laugh tons. Some of your favorite Christmas gifts came from Alexis, Haley and Katie.
- Dad

Uncle Jim

DSC_0062.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
You got to meet your uncle Jim last week and you thought he was super cool. Here you are about 60 seconds after being introduced to him. - Papa

Christmas with Magah

DSC_0047.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob -
Before coming back to Austin, we had a fantastic Christmas with your Magah (Grandma). You were showered with attention, love and tons of Christmas gifts. You met a bunch of family members, and had a great time in Denver. It seems like the whole time you were in Colorado (and this is now true here in Austin), you were in someone's arms the entire time.
- Dad

Happy Baby

DSC_0085.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

2nd Christmas

DSC_0070.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob -
So I admit it - I am shamefully behind on blogging. Here is a quick shot from today. Today we had our second Christmas day...this one in Austin with your mom's side of the family. Luckily Santa figured out that we hadn't celebrated yet in Austin, and last night he brought you a stocking as big as you! Click on the photo for more images from my Flickr photostream. More blogging to follow soon to catch you up from the rest of our holiday and previous travel for residency interviews. Love,
Da

Sonnet 30

the sweet, silent thought, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
You and Magah are sharing what Shakespear called "a sweet silent thought." She is pretty smart, huh? Pop

meg and jake

meg and jake, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob, You just met your cousin Margaret, who says: "girls love boys who look like Charlie Brown, so keep it up."
Dad

doted on

doted on, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
Today you met your greataunt Katherine, who loves you very much. You thought she was really great, and we are going to get to hang out with her lots more soon!
Dad

Leaves

DSC_0160.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
Here is one of the pictures from our photo safari in Newport News. Click the image to see more shots.
Pop

love

love, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Here is a shot of you and your mom after her interview. She looks incredibly great, especially considering that she'd slept 4 hours in the past 48.

bundled up

bundled up, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
We haven't had a chance to write about npn yet, but here is a picture of you during the trip.
Dad

In the News!

Jacob -
 This weekend we're in Newport News, VA with your mom for a residency interview.  I'll fill you in on what our impressions are of the town, but first the important stuff: You were in the local news last night!

 On our way to meet your mom in the baggage area after we disembarked from the plane (we had to split up in a search for a lost bottle), we were accosted by a local news reporter.  She was desperate to find a photogenic father/son combo to interview for a story she was covering about a change in the security lines at the airport; we fit the bill perfectly.  Apparently a "family lane" had recently been added to help streamline the security process, and the reporter + camera lady were there to record the reactions of unaware travelers.

 We reluctantly agreed to participate in the interview, and the camera lady got some great shots of you being pushed around in the stroller ($600 well spent, after all! :) ).

 So. When you are older and begin to watch local news you'll probably be struck by the fact that the people being interviewed universally come across as dim-witted.  Your dad was no exception to this rule. 

 

It turns out that local reporters are generally fresh out of journalism school, where they learn to ask "what" and "why" and "when", etc.  In the case of our reporter, once she asked those questions once, apparently not getting me to emit the particular sound bite best squeezed into a three second clip, she decided to cycle back through the questions, not really bothering to rephrase them.

 So what showed up on the news clip later that night was this:

• A striking image of Jacob and Ben Truitt walking confidently toward the baggage claim
• A voice-over by the reporter in question asserting that Jacob Truitt had had a rough day of travel, or some such
• An insightful question from the reporter posed to Ben asking for a reaction to the idea of family lanes in the security area at the airport
• A dim-witted sounding response cut from my second pass through the question during the interview in which I answered "well..uh...other than what I just said..I guess it will get families out of their way" or some similarly grammatically and intellectually challenged answer
• A cut back to the handsome and clearly more stimulating baby being wheeled away in a designer stroller with the voice-over lady wrapping up the story

 You are a star, Jake!  We fully expect letters from Hollywood producers awaiting our arrival back in San Antonio.  We looked for an online version of the report without success, but the station is WVEC, just in case you want to prowl through their archives one day when you are the highest paid child actor in history.

 More to follow soon about Newport News.

Love,
Dad

watching Emmy

watching Emmy, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob, Here is a picture of you and your mom watching a video of your cousin Emmy. You are really fascinated by her.
Dad

Roll over

roll over, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob, You just rolled over all by yourself for the first time ever. Progress. :) Dad

Yes we can

Barack Obama - Santa Fe Art District, originally uploaded by Seetwist.

Jacob, Tonight was a great night for democracy. It was a great night for your future. When you read this one day when you are older, take a minute to watch President-Elect Obama's acceptance speech. Tonight he was a personification of our hopes and dreams for your future; for your potential. Love,
Dad ps- tonight you laughed out loud in pure unbridled delight for the first time that we've heard. You discovered splashing in the tub and found it to be hilarious! Spirits are high all around. :)

DSC_0173.JPG

DSC_0173.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Pumpkin

DSC_0168.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
Here is the jacolantern we carved together.
Dad

Happy Halloween!

DSC_0106.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob,
although you may one day beat me for allowing this, we dressed you up like a monkey for Halloween. Worse, we tortured you with tons of pictures. Click the image above to see more in flickr.
Dad

dancing

dancing, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

content

content, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

bruce robinson concert

bruce robinson concert, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob,
Tonight we're sitting on a porch in austin underneath live oaks listening to some great Texas music. Your mom and dad are enjoying a dos xx while you sit on my lap and hold my finger with your hand. All is right in the world tonight.
Dad

Reunion

reunion, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob,
tonight you were reunited with all of your aunts and your Nana. You are being read to, serenaded, and held to your heart's content.
Dad

Kindervoten

2008-10-24, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
As goes kindergarten, so goes the votership of Texas, unfortunately for Obama.
Dad

2008-10-22

2008-10-22, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Early voter

voter, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob,
Welcome to Democracy! You had your first voting experience today. At least 1 other Democrat was in line to vote. She said she hoped you won't be stuck with "no child left behind."
Dad

moo!

moo!, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Redbelt

Jacob -
You and I just finished watching Redbelt, the 2008 David Mamet film. What a great film!
We wrote a review together - you liked it at least as much as I did.
Now we're going to start some laundry, do some dishes, and take the dogs to the lake so that they can get some exercise.
Later dude,
Dad

Emily's birthday party

DSC_0025.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob,
Today we went to the Reynolds' house for Emily's birthday party. The weather was great and we had a great visit. You are quickly catching up to Maddy in size, even though she is twice your age. After the party we went to pick up a pumpkin to carve. We didn't get around to carving it just yet, so watch for a post soon about that, then Halloween will be here in no time! We're down to our last week before we head to Austin for a month so that your mom can do a rotation there. Exciting times! Love,
Dad

excited about technology

excited about technology, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
This weekend you started to watch tv, movie, and computer screens. Before Friday you ignored almost every screen you were around. But then Saturday we took you with us to see "nick and norah's infinite playlist", and you watched almost the whole movie. Then today you watched a documentary with me about photojournalism in war torn regions. As we speak you are watching your mom go through photos on her computer. Something tells me you might grow up to be a photographer or cenimatographer. That's all for now. Love,
Dad

Like father like son

Jake

You and your dad are both pretty cool in your shades.

Love,
Mom

cross eyed

cross eyed, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob,
This week you learned to cross your eyes and you've become obsessed with experimenting with it. It is freaking us out, dude.
Dad

Looking big!

DSC_0072.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jacob, Jeez you look big in this one!
Dad

Your mom sure loves you

DSC_0031.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
You've got a mommy who really loves you. Here is a great picture from not long ago.
Dad

Big Boy

Hey Jake -

Your dad took to your 2 month check-up last week and the doctor said that you look great!  You weighed in at 13 lbs 8 oz and you are 23 3/4 inches long.  We can't believe how big you are!  Here are some recent pictures.

DSC_0069.JPG

DSC_0069.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
Tonight your mom read you "Love Bug", which your Magah got for you not long ago. You loved the book so much that your mom read it four times! Your favorite part is that love bugs' favorite thing to do is to tickle you!
Dad

Happy birthday Magah!

Jake,
Tonight you danced to celebrate your Magah's birthday.

We'll post a clip of it soon.

Love, Dad

Big brain, little neck

Jacob,
So you've been showing off for your Nana and aunt Samantha tonight. You've been holding your head up and looking around, which is an impressive feat since your head size to neck size ratio is out of control.

We're currently in Austin, escaping the storm that is coming in the aftermath of hurricane Ike.

Your Grandparents Ray and Annie probably wish they were with us right now. As we speak the eye of the hurricane is traveling over their house. We are anxiously awaiting updates on their status!

Later dude,
Dad

Chillin

DSC_0125.JPG, originally uploaded by ben.truitt.

Jake,
Here is a picture of you chillin in your activity gym while I check out the new camera lens I just bought.
-Dad

Daycare

Hey jake

Today was you first day at daycare. While it was somewhat traumatic for me, you seemed to have a great day. Your daddy dropped you off and came to visit you at lunch. During the day you played on the play mat, hung out in the swing, had 3 bottles and took 2 naps. Your daddy and I picked you up a little after 5 and you were in a great mood. I missed you so much during the day but we are having a fun evening together. I swear that you are even bigger than you were this morning!
Goodnight sweet boy
Love,
mom

New photos

Jake -

 Some new photos (and some old photos) have been uploaded to flickr.  Here are a couple of my favorites:





Love,
Dad

Espresso with your milk?

Jacob,
Well it has been a fun evening after a restful afternoon.

We had dinner with Dave, Lucy and Anna Slotnick. The Slotnicks are expecting a baby boy in a few months, so they enjoyed getting to meet you and hold you.

After dinner the three of us went to a local coffee shop. Your mom had a latte, I got a pretty gross espresso, and you enjoyed a bottle of cold milk (sorry!).

We love hanging out with you!
Dad

Jake's Video Debut

Hey Jake,

I got a new digital camera last night and I tried out the video on you. Check it out - there is a nice plot twist at the end :)

Love,
Mom

Friday night at Fralos

Hey Jake,

Tonight we introduced you to our favorite pizza place on earth. It's called Fralos, and the have great outdoor seating under huge Texas live oaks strewn with light bulb strands.

We brought our own bottle of wine, and you watched some big kids play while your mom held you and ate a delecious tortillini pasta dish.

Cya Wiggleworm,
Dad

Teddy bear

Jake,

You sure do love the teddy bear that Jen sent you. Today I set it beside you and when I looked back you were hugging it.

Mom